Hi folks, Spent the morning in the Sax Zim Bog and have a few good sightings to share.
We found a Great Gray Owl hunting the roadside ditch along 133, just east of Blue Spruce Rd. Always exciting! Also found Connecticut Warblers in numerous locations (Admiral Rd, Arkola Rd & others), Lincoln Sparrows in a couple of spots (Admiral Road & Blue Spruce just N of 133) and a couple of LeConte's Sparrows on Arkola Rd. Barred Owl, Broad-winged Hawk (an adult, calling repeatedly from the top of a spruce in the middle of bog habitat...go figure!), an extremely cooperative Wilson's Snipe, Palm Warbler, Brewer's Blackbirds, no Upland Sandpipers, no grouse. The Bog sure is fun in the summer. Just remember insect repellent. :-) As an interesting side note, I monitor Northern Goshawk territories for the DNR and checked two of my active nest sites today. One had two healthy looking branchers and two healthy acting (ha, ha) adults. At that site I checked a few pellets from under the nest tree and found a whole Ruffed Grouse foot inside a pellet, practically intact. Fascinating! The second site was a different story. When checking for breeding status at that site in April, I found a newly built-up old nest, complete with downy feathers and greenery, but two broken & eaten eggs near the nest tree. Upon searching the territory for a possible re-nesting, I was thrilled to find them incubating at a different nest site. Upon arriving at the re-nest site today, I discovered a nicely built up nest but no downy feathers and no greenery. After an extensive search of the area, I discovered two more broken & eaten eggs. I've got more active nest sites to check over the next couple of days, so I've got my fingers crossed. Good birding, Debbie ____________________________ Debbie Waters Education Director Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory P.O. Box 3006 Duluth, MN 55803-3006 218.428.3539 [email protected] www.hawkridge.org Bringing kids and birds together. Over 7,000 times in 2008. Become a MEMBER and support our educational efforts! "I'm an early bird and I'm a night owl, so I'm wise and I have worms." - Michael Scott, The Office ---- Join or Leave mou-net:http://lists.umn.edu/cgi-bin/wa?SUBED1=mou-net Archives:http://lists.umn.edu/archives/mou-net.html
